Shastri terms Srinivasan's ICC appointment a 'very good choice'

Former India skipper Ravi Shastri has hailed International Cricket Council (ICC) for choosing the beleaguered Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) supremo, N Srinivasan as its first chairman. The cricketer turned commentator said Srinivasan being appointed ICC chairman despite the Supreme Court stripping off his powers as the BCCI chief pending probe into alleged corruption in the Indian Premier League (IPL) was a good choice.

"If you want my answer, It's a very good choice," Shastri said. "I don't think you should jump the gun. There's an inquiry going on, let that happen. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court has said there's no reason why Srinivasan can't go and become the ICC chairman," Shastri said at a promotional event in Kolkata.

Opinions may vary but the former all-rounder was of firm belief that Twenty20 was the 'injection' cricket needed.

"It was the injection the game needed to evolve. We're very lucky to have got three faculties in a game of cricket.There is a place for all three formats. This is the only sport that has a place for three formats. It won't happen in any other sport. I think T20 cricket was extremely important," he said.

Shastri differed in the notion that present day youngsters are lured only to IPL ignoring Test cricket.

"It's a misconception that everyone wants to just play the IPL. There might be a few who would be eyeing only IPL, but majority of the youngsters want to play for India and in Tests. The tournament has a lot of positives. I've seen more people wanting to follow the sport, more viewers, youngsters, families at the ground. At the end of the day it's cricketing skills," opined Shastri.

"Look at the standard of fielding, the quality of catches taken in this year's IPL, even the running between the wickets. It's fabulous. All these skills will help you in the five-day game as well; a brilliant run out may change the course of the Test match. There are a lot of positives that have come out of it. Ideally a player would want to play all three but if he's stuck with one then so be it," Shastri added.

Going down the memory lane, Shastri said India could have won the 1987 World Cup had they managed to sneak through the semifinals against England and played at the Eden Gardens.

"I've one regret - that we could not beat England in Mumbai. If we could overcome that hurdle then with the huge fan support that the Eden Gardens have to offer we would have surely lifted the Trophy in 1987," Shastri lamented about 35-run loss to England at the Wankhede.

Showering more praise on the Eden crowd, Shastri said the city held a special place for him as it was here they could overcome a string of defeats against the Windies after their historic 1983 triumph.

Recollecting their five-match ODI series against the Windies in 1987-88, Shastri said: "It was just after the New Year (in 1988) and we could finally beat them for the first time since our win in the final of the World Cup.

"The atmosphere was electrifying with one lakh fans packed up in the stands, I still remember the day vividly," Shastri said.

He has retired from Test cricket and handed over the reins to Virat Kohli but MS Dhoni has stayed back with the Indian Test team as a back-up wicketkeeper for the last Test match against Australia scheduled to be played in Sydney from January 6.

Former India captain Rahul Dravid said Zaheer Khan must contemplate his future with the team after another insipid tour since his comeback from a year-long layoff, that saw him travel to France to get back in shape.